If the trail is too gnar, should you ride it?

I guess this could be an open letter to the guy on the trail last night, but it's not.. Definitely directed towards a certain person, hopefully he reads this. If it sounds familiar, hopefully you can learn from it.

There is a first time for everything. Ever since you started riding a few months ago, getting the hang of this mountain biking thing is becoming easier.. After becoming weary of the same old trails, you keep hearing about a different trail your buddies have been riding and decide to give the new trail a go. It's your first time down the new trail, and all of your buddies are egging you on let it roll but even they are having a hard time themselves... After the first drop, all the extreme challenges you've heard exist on the trail are in fact there, and quickly you realize that you are in over your head, even after a short 100 feet into it.. Your friends have already gone ahead, and you keep riding only to realize the trail is not getting any easier. This is an after work ride, itís getting darker, and you are dropping into a steep canyon quite rapidly, and all of the sudden, you are well past the point of return. Of course, you are a prideful person and letting your friends see you scared is the last thing you want to do, but since you are off the back, and you decide itís ok to walk your bike, impede other riders and occupy all of the trail. In a short period of time, the sense of pride you have from riding in other places. Quickly, your thoughts fade to fear and confusion, and you have quickly found yourself in over your head. You are scared sh*tless in the fading light, on a trail you have never been on. Increasing paranoia finally subside when someone comes along and has the notion to check on you. We have all been there, I suppose.

I found a guy at nearly dark on my evening ride last night, totally freaked out, and quite frankly, it freaked me out, too finding him there. Crazy part was his buddies LEFT HIM because the parking lot was a ghost town when I left the park. Please noobs, think it out before dropping in. Ride the trail with someone you trust and look up to, but in the morning preferably so you have all day.

The difference between a rider without a helmet, and a rider lost and scared in fading light is not much.. In both circumstances riders like me are the first to respond, and I will bo so busted for being late to dinner trying to save you from a bad descision you just made.

Riders leaving a man behind is reprehensible. Especially if the rider is a noob and/or has never ridden the trail before. The fact that it's a gnarly trail only makes it worse. I just can't believe people would do that.

Now, that being said, where is this trail? It sounds rad. I want to shred it.

Almost as bad, ok a distant second, is bringing your girlfriend along. I'm not talking about the 5% of bad ass chicks, I'm talking about the other 95%,

Are we supposed to wait for you while you coddle her along? That's not what I signed up for. I don't want to listen to her whine that it's: too steep, too rocky, infested with roots, scary, too many other riders, etc.

She is sure to have a mechanical that she can't resolve. She'll almost certainly try to fix it (or wait for you to fix it with a condescending look) in the worst possible spot, blocking all the real riders from flowing bliss. You, as her riding mentor, should recognize this faux paux and move her bike to a better location, but you won't, A - because you are a tool, if you weren't a tool she wouldn't be here in the first place. B - because that may just cause her to whine more, or god forbid, start crying. (as I witnessed last weekend at Saratoga Gap). If you're thinking about riding with your girlfriend or wife, I pity you, grow a pair.

Take her to the mall if you want to spend time together. Seriously dude, have some boundaries, you don't need to do everything together. Don't even get me started on tandem bikes, possibly the dumbest invention ever.

Yeah, basically stopped riding with one of my buddies. Everytime he shows up to ride it's with his girl... I mean, once in awhile is okay, but everytime? It's a little annoying that he doesn't tell me she's coming since it seriously limits our options for shredding gnar. Isn't that some violation of the bro code or something?

I guess that's what he's into so whatevs. I just stopped riding with them because I got tired of waiting.

If the trail is too gnar, should you ride it?

Yeah I thought riding with your buddies meant actually riding with your buddies. Not just regrouping at the bottom and hoping everyone is there. If its too much trouble to stop on occasion and check on the people behind you, go ride solo.

Why do people feel enabled with the purchase of a mountain bike anyway? You still have to do like 90% of the work..

Girls? Oh now that's different.. Totally different. Every girl I have got serious with, got a bike to ride from me.. Usually starts with me not wanting to fight with her over being gone all day, I build her a bike from spare parts, we break up, she keeps the bike. Lose lose. I sometimes wish I still had a clean, hardly used set of gray XTR cranks with a triple.. You know, for a bar bike.. Rather lose a bike in the bushes at the bar than lose it to a chick any day!

Since this thread seems to be wandering all over the place, I'll turn down another bunny hole... I've met a lot of guys over the years who would love to date someone who they can ride with. In almost all the cases I know, this has never worked out. Riding became a compromise because their skillsets did not match up. Although my partner used to ride, which is a story for another time, our thoughts for the ideal vacation is a good example. I like the mountains, while she prefers the beach. If we go where the one wants, the other is unhappy. If we compromise, we end up in Kansas and no one is happy. My advice, it's much healthier to have separate pursuits.

Yeah, I've found it's hard to get my gf to ride the stuff I like and the style I like. Worst part is she doesn't have a bike, so she's on the Firebird and I'm on the Glory. So now of course I want to ride mostly downhill and techy stuff, but that's too much for her. Just ends up a big mess where it's all bad. I think I threw my bike down and slammed my helmet in frustration last time we rode. Maybe I will try road riding with her so she can get comfortable on a bike without worrying about the surface she's on.

Dropping your buddy on a ride sounds like roadie-style tactics. Driving off before he gets back (at dark!) sounds like...time for new buddies.

In a related note, Squashyo tried really hard to lose me in the woods today--20 miles of jumps and random trails in the mid-day heat. He even sent me down 2 caves. For reals! Luckily for me I drove both of us, so he couldn't completely ditch me...

As for riding with g/f's, i ride with mine every week, from Demo to Downieville to big road trips. She's also my mechanic, so it comes in really handy!

Last edited by dirtvert; 05-03-2013 at 09:07 PM.

Why?

Because we like the taste of freedom; because we like the smell of danger. ~ E. Abbey

From my time in Search and Rescue, you all would be AMAZED how many groups head out and leave someone behind. Some times they don't even wait at the parking lot! People need to really think about who they head out into the wilderness with.